Sesame Chicken

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5 from 2 votes

Say goodbye to takeout with this easy and delicious homemade sesame chicken recipe!

Prep Time30

Cook Time55

Total Time1 25

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Asian

Servings:

Calories: 670kcal

Author: Jennifer Fishkind

Ingredients

Sauce:

1½ tbsp sesame oil
½ tsp garlic paste
½ tsp ginger paste
⅓ cup soy sauce (lite)
½ cup rice vinegar
¾ cup light brown sugar
½ cup water
1½ tbsp cornstarch
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Chicken:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts diced into approximately 1-inch cubes
2 cups buttermilk
3½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Vegetable or peanut oil for frying

Optional Toppings:

1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
3 green onions finely sliced
3 cups cooked white rice

Instructions

Sauce:

In a small saucepan, saute ginger and garlic paste in sesame oil for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.
Stir 1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch into the ½ cup of water.
Add the remaining ingredients to the saucepan: soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, cornstarch/water mixture (slurry), and red pepper flakes.
Simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until sauce thickens to a syrup consistency. (approximately 10 minutes).
Remove from heat.

Chicken:

Meanwhile, fill a deep stockpot/Dutch oven or frying pan with 2-3” of oil. Affix a food thermometer to the side of the pan and heat the oil to 350°F. This will take about 10 minutes to reach the desired temperature.
While the oil is heating, prepare the battered chicken. Whisk together the salt, pepper, and flour in a bowl. Pour the buttermilk into a second bowl. Working with just a few pieces of chicken at a time, dip each piece of chicken into the flour mixture to coat it. Then, dip it into the buttermilk. Finally, dip it back into the flour mixture and set it on a separate plate. Continue to prepare all of the chicken.
When the oil has reached 350°F, batch cook the chicken. Add 5-8 pieces of battered chicken to the hot oil at a time, frying for about 2 minutes and then flipping them over to cook on the other side for another 2 minutes. When the chicken is uniformly golden brown, remove it from the oil, draining the excess oil back into the pan, and placing the fried chicken onto a few paper towels to absorb any additional oil.
Continue batch cooking the chicken, ensuring that the oil maintains a fairly constant temperature of 350°F. If too much chicken is added at one time, the oil will probably cool down too quickly. If the oil becomes too hot, the chicken will burn.
When all of the chicken has finished cooking, transfer it to a large bowl. Pour the sauce over the top and toss to coat evenly.
Serve over rice immediately, with toasted sesame seeds and green onions, if desired.

Notes

Pro-Tips:

Our chicken is extra crispy. You can do a skinny version by simply browning the chicken in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and coating with the sauce (skip the batter and deep-frying).
Do not add too much chicken to cook in your oil at a time. If too much chicken is added at one time, the oil will probably cool down too quickly.
If sauce becomes too cool while the chicken is finished cooking, warm it on the stovetop for a few minutes just before tossing with the chicken.

Nutrition